Foreign Secretary marks UN International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women

Foreign Secretary William Hague: "We must shatter the culture of impunity for those who use rape and sexual violence as a weapon of war and shift the balance of shame away from survivors to the perpetrators of this crime".

This was published under the 2010 to 2015 Conservative and Liberal Democrat coalition government

To mark the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, Foreign Secretary William Hague said:

“Preventing and addressing sexual violence is essential to resolving conflicts and building sustainable peace. In our lifetimes millions of women, children and men have endured this horror.

“We must shatter the culture of impunity for those who use rape and sexual violence as a weapon of war and shift the balance of shame away from survivors to the perpetrators of this crime. This is a cause whose time has come, and it will be a major theme of the UK’s Presidency of the G8 next year.

“By standing shoulder to shoulder with civil society, communities and international organisations I truly believe that we can confront and one day even end the use of sexual violence as a weapon of war.”

Help us improve GOV.UK

Help us improve GOV.UK

To help us improve GOV.UK, we’d like to know more about your visit today. We’ll send you a link to a feedback form. It will take only 2 minutes to fill in. Don’t worry we won’t send you spam or share your email address with anyone.